Highway and street traffic marking and method and apparatus for making same



March 30, y1948. w`. A. PHiLLlPs 2,438,764

HIGHWAY AND STREET TRAFFIC MARKING AND METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR' MAKING SAME Filed Jan. 24, 1945 ROLLER,

MAIN PAVEMENT 0R ROAD BED l/ 5' W/QPHu-MPS ATTORNEYS F1? 3 3 l M-U7UWM Patented Mar. 30, 1948 IHGHWAY AND STREET TRAFFICv MARKING AND METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR MAK- ING SAME Walter A. Phiuips, salinas, Calif.

Application January 24, 1945, Serial No. 574,386

(Cl. SI1-1.5)

.6 Claims.

This invention relates to the marking of highways or streets with tramo controlling markings or signs, and more particularly and specifically to the traiiic marker or sign itself and the method and apparatus for applying it to the highway or street.

For brevity in description the wordhighway hereinafter is to be interpreted as including streets or roads, and the work markings or marker is to include signs, lines or any indicia utilized for the direction and control of trailic.

Heretofore it has been common practice to paint markers on the highway or to apply metallic or glass inserts to the highway. Paint has the disadvantage of .being tracked before it becomes thoroughly dry and the necessity of blocking oii a portion of the highway, after the paint is applied, until it has dried. Additionalli the maintenance cost of paint traiiic markers is high because of the necessity of frequent replacement. Metal inserts are cbjectionably costly and tend to work loose under traic and in the majority of instances are of poor visibility in daylight hours and particularly so at night. Their raised surfaces above the highway are likewise objectionable. Glass markers are also objectionable for many reasons among which is that of breakage which causes high maintenance costs.

The present invention overcomes the objections and deciencies of highway markers as now commonly made and used and has as an object the provision of a marker of high visibility both during daylight and night hours and one which is permanent and therefore has a negligible maintenance cost.

A further object of the invention is the provision of a novel method and apparatus for applying the marker to an already completed highway or to a highway as it is being made or laid.

Another object of the invention is the provision of a marker composed of a new material which is extremely cheap yet at the same time will withstand heavy tramo wear and at all vtimes be highly visible.

Fig. 1 is a diagrammatic illustration of the` juncture of two highways to one of which is applied the marker of the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a plan View of the mat utilized in practicing the method of the present invention.

Fig. 3 is a vertical sectional view on the line 3-3 of Fig. 2 looking in the direction indicated by arrows. v

Fig. 4 is a diagrammatic view similar to Fig. 1, illustrating one step in the process of the invention.

Fig. 5 is a diagrammatic view illustrating one of the steps of the process.

The traiiic marker or sign is composed of dolomite pebbles which are embedded in the highway and have only their upper ends visible. The upper ends of the pebbles are ush or substantially liush with the top surface of the highway and are arranged in a form either to constitute a word or words or some other trafiic control indication such as a line down the center of the highway which is a traffic marking commonly used for dividing traic traveling over the highway. Dolomite can be easily obtained and is particularly cheap when only in pebble sizes. This material is very white and su'iciently hard so that it will show practically no wear even under the heaviest Vtraiiic conditions. The white dolomite marking will be highly visible and particularly so if the highway is of a contrasting darker color or is made of a darker color at that area immediately surrounding the marker. The nature of dolomite is such that at night it will tend to reiiect vehicle lights or gleam when struck by light rays. This material .possesses a shiny substance which makes it highly desirable as a highway marking material.

Inl the drawings the highway marking is illustrated as comprising the word Stop positioned v adjacent the intersection of a pair of highways and the drawings specically illustrate the manner of applying the marking to an already paved or completed highway, and this method will be iirst described and thereafter the method of applying the marking to a new highway, that is a highway at the time it is laid, will be described.

Having reference now to the drawings and utilizing like characters and reference numerals to designate similar parts and referring rst to Figs. 2 and 3 of the drawings, E is a mat which in`this instance is of a rectangular shape but its shape of course would depend upon the particular mark or word to be applied to the highway. The matis composedof some suitable compressi- Actually, although not Y preferably, a single perforation eould'be usedfor Y Y each letter of the word so that the mat would in such a case be generally similar to a stencil. vA dolomite pebble is positioned in Yeach mat vperioration. Filling the perforations will befacilitated by placing on the bottom of the mat a sheet of paper 3 or some other like frangible material which will close the lower ends of the holes or perforations. For Vsimplicity in application `a single sheet 3 is illustrated butV of course arlindividual piece of materialcould be utilized for each Vhole without departing from 'the spirit Vof the invention. AfterV each perforation has been lled With a pebble a similar `frangible sheet Y2 is applied to the top of the mat to sealitheupper ends of theY perforations. These sheets retain the pebbles Vin Vplace and permit the mat to .be handled and transported without danger of :displacement of the pebbles. f

Figs. 4 and 5 illustrate the method kof Aapplying the marker to the highway. VThe old or already laid pavementor roadbedis designatedFa'nd to this at 'the point where the `:marker'is Atolse rolled smooth Vand to a vsuitable thickness. vThe thicknessv or depth would be dependent largely upon the particular size of dolomite pebbles `being used for the reason that each pebble is toV be completely embedded in the asphalt. A depth slightly greater 'than the thickness -o'i 'themat has been found to be highly satisfactory.;

The asphalt is preferably smoothedout by la quite heavy roller which both compresses it-and smooths it out. Whilefthis'asphalt 'orplastic is still soft the mat is laid upon it as illustrated in Figs. 4 and 5 ofthe drawings. When the mat is properly in place pressure is applied vt't'he top of the mat by meansof a roller the weight of' which can be comparatively smallfit has been found desirable that this roller exert a pressure of from four to ten pounds per squarein'ch. As the roller is moved Voverthe mat the ldolomite pebbles areforced into the soft asphalt orgplastic sheet in the manner illustrated in1figf5 *andY l as the roller reaches the mat perforations lllthe upper Yends of the dolomite pebbles 5 are engaged The movement of the roller G over the mat sets all of the dolomite pebbles in the asphalt sheet D and they adhere therein sufliciently to permit the removal ofthe mat. After the re moval of the mat the asphalt sheet D with the pebbles set therein is rolled by a regular street roller which `has a weight which will apply probably as great as 200 to 400 pounds per square inch. This rolling willembed the pebbles in the asphalt untilthe upper ends thereof are ilush .or substantially flush with the top surface of the -strip D. Y Y '-I'o prevent4the^mat from sticking or adhering i to the asphaltxfstrip which Would make its reand pushed downwardly through the mat holes' Y or perforations. As'the'pebblesmovedqwhwarly the frangible sheet 3 'onfthejbottom Vof thfellflat Y irangible sheet 2V ori-the top -ofjthejmail 11S like Wise broken as at 6 at each'matperforatlon.

"method jare flush orV substantially y moval more diicult, it has been found desirable, Ybut Vnot!V essential, to Wet the mat before its ap- "of the. roller'used isV not sufficientA tofcause-this- Inlig. V1 ofthe drawings the Vcompletedroad rtrailic marking of the invention as applied to the highway bytheY process isjillustrated. Here the Word Stopr is shown applied adjacentwthe cor'- nerof highway A at its junction or crossingwith highway' B. Thejmarking is designatedC'and is.

embedded in theasphalt or similarstrip D53V Where it is desired to apply'markingto an -old or .'allready.pavedk or laid street theemethod is slightly' altered but is so similar to Ytheime'thod Yalready described 'as to vmake illustration` of; it

unnecessary@ A word description will suiiceito an understanding' of this Where a highway isfbeing .constructed'fwith any kind of asphaltic surfaceor of concetefthe mat carrying the marking `is applied'to V71thehighway ljust prior to thefiinal c-ompletionthereof.

AVAfter thehighway has been rolled orotlfiervviseV smoothed the vmat is applied tov the topf surface thereof at'theY particular spotor'poilitwheritis "desired that the marking appear. Thama'f/s 'then rolled with alight rolleras hasbeeh previously described and the dolomite Vpebblesfare forced Vout of the 'mat into the highwayt'o' a depth which is a portion of Ythe lerijrtli'of the pebbles, The mat is then 'removedandafheavy highway orstree't roller is then passefdback--and forth overth'e" pebblesfso as 'toA embed `tlfiemcom'- -pletely in the highway *so that their-upprends ush with" the 'upper faceof thehighway. Y '55.

vvitli'tetliV methods themateriaiifwliichftlie pebbles is embedded'is permittedftojhardei..

Thisis of Ic-oursein accord with vcommonY practice Yas a highwayfisnever openedsfor use untilallof its surfaoeis eompletelyhardenedonset n lllltilizing the. principle of theypresgerlt` invention highway markings of anyVV kind `can Abe 'appliedV at or Vover ,any desired` area tofiahighway. At line down the center 'orV sides of a' highwayxould'be applied with equa1 facility. In ap-plyinglirresa f plurality of strip-like mats could be'utili'zed.. The nature 'of the mat would of course Vdepenglupori Vtheparticularmarking to be appliedtothehigh- Y way. 1 i Y Y i im.;

jA highwayltrafiic markinggof the, naturejofthe present invention and applied in accordwith 'the present Amethod provides a marker which is'cheap both astomatealcostand apslicationnnd has the highly desirable and essential attribute of permanency andgood visibility.

Departures can be made from the specific,consV slightlyi modied 5 structions and instrumentalities illustrated and described without departing from the inventive concept and the invention is to be limited only within the scope of the hereinafter following claims.

I claim:

1. In a device for use in applying a traffic control marking to the soft upper surface of a high- Way, a carrier composed f a compressible material provided with a series of spaced openings extending entirely through the carrier and arranged to depict the desired traffic control marking, an individual hard element in and substantially iilling each of said carrier openings, and a frangible sheet closing the ends of said -openings for retaining said elements therein.

2. An article of manufacture as defined in claim 1 wherein, said hard elements are dolomite pebbles.

3. The method of producing a traffic control marker in a highway having a plastic upper surface which hardens when set comprising, placing on the surface of a highway while the same is soft before it is set a compressible carrier having therein a plurality of individual openings extending through the carrier from the top to the bottom thereof and sealed at their ends with a frangible sheet with said openings arranged so that they form the particular highway marking it is desired to produce, and carrying in each carrier opening a dolomite pebble of a size to substantially ll the opening, passing a roller over the top of the carrier to compress the same and engage the upper ends of the pebbles and force them out of the openings past the frangible seal at the lower ends of the openings and into adhesive retention engagement with the highway, removing the carrier from the highway and from about the pebbles, then rolling the highway to force the pebbles downwardly thereinto until their top ends are substantially flush with the top surface of the highway, and iinally, allowing the highway to set.

4. In a device for use in applying a traiiic control marking to the soft upper surface of a highway, a carrier composed of a compressiblematerial provided with a series of spaced openings extending entirely through the carrier and arranged to depict the desired traftlc control marking, an individual hard element in each of said carrier openings, means retaining said elements in said openings, and said element retaining means permitting the passage of said elements downwardly and outwardly from the openings upon the compression of the carrier by the application of pressure to the upper surface thereof.

5. The method of producing a tramo control marker in a highway having a plastic upper surface which hardens when set comprising, placing on the surface of a highway while the same is soft before it is set a compressible carrier having therein a plurality of individual openings arranged so that they form the particular highway marking it is desired to produce and each opening carrying an element retained therein by means which releases the elements upon the compression of the carrier by the application of pressure to its upper surface, applying weight to the upper surface of the carrier to compress the same to force the elements out of the openings and into adhesive retention engagement with the highway, removing the carrier from the highway and from about the elements, then applying pressure to the elements to force the same downwardly into the highway until their top ends are substantially flush with the top surface of the highway, and nally, allowing the highway to set.

6. The method of producing a traiilc control marker in a highway having a plastic upper surface which hardens when set comprising, placing on the surface of the highway while the same is soft before it is set a compressible carrier having therein a plurality of individual openings extending through the carrier from the top to the bottom thereof and sealed at their ends with a frangible sheet with said openings arranged so that they form the particular highway marking it is desired to produce and carrying in each carrier opening an element of a length substantially the length of the opening, passing a weight over the top of the carrier to compress the same and engage the upper ends of the elements and force them out of the openings past the frangible seal at the lower ends of the openings and into adhesive retention engagement with the highway, removing the carrier from the highway and from about the elements, then applying weight to the elements to force them downwardly into the highway until their top ends are substantially flush with the top surface of the highway, and finally, allowing the highway to set.

WALTER A. PI-HLLIPS.

REFERENCES CITED v The following references are of record in the iile of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,583,516 Aniield May 4, 1926 1,754,253 Avery Apr. 15, 1930 1,900,960 Takeda Mar. 14, 1933 2,010,025 Kirchner et al. Aug. 6, 1935 2,139,068 Bourdon Dec. 6, 1938 2,185,488 White Jan. 2, 1940 2,303,395 Schultz Dec. 1, 1942 2,368,380 Schwartz Jan. 30, 1945 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 269,682 Great Britain Apr. 26, 1927 485,168 Great Britain May 12, 1938 

